Forums » RP Discussion » More info about running a Group RP?

Hey everyone. So, I've read the FAQ listed on here about the basics like expectations vs reality, admin vs rping and all of that, but does anybody have any other tips for running a group RP that could make life easier in terms of time and efficiency?

I'd like to gauge experiences with those who've tried, and others who've been more successful with it, and what players may have learned/enjoyed from participating in them. I'd also like to know how to run the IC if there's multiple locations, and how to set up events to get everyone involved. I've GMed linear small group forum rps in the past with very limited sandbox rp experience, which is the type of Group RP I intend to run. Thanks for any and all help with this!

That is actually a good question. I've been running a group for a year now (it'll actually be a year in four days happysad wheezing) and I have to say, best choice in my life is creating this group.

Honestly, I will just say that you need to be super prepared to roleplay less and build more, especially if you are going to do original lore. Roleplaying into multiple locations will work best if you have, what I call "hubs" in the forums page. It's easy if you roleplay in a world to separate everything into maybe states or as such or, like we've done in our group given that it is playing out within a city, we made different hubs within the city and what is located in the said hubs, what types of institutions etc. But for that, you need to come with an idea.

Give some foundation for characters to flourish in. Give them roles. Offer IC communities that have plot potential, so things aren't aimless.

You also need to think if you'll only make a roleplaying group or a community (things that will offer many nice OOC activities), you'll need tons of organization and I'd suggest finding a friend who will help you out in coming up with ideas and someone who will work something else while you're focusing on one thing. It all depends on how ambitious you are.

I guess these are like the most important things to think about, at least in my opinion, before you start a group. You just need a good idea and foundation, then start building from there.

I wish you good luck in your future endeavors!

First, congrats on running your RP for one year! I’m glad to see that it turned out to be a positive decision for you. Secondly, thanks for your valuable input.The concept I have in mind is based on something fairly established lore-wise, and they’ve gone so far as to map out the city, and much like your RP, it will be the type of location I’ll be running everything through.

Can you give some examples?

Thank you very much!

If you have some foundation for the group overall, then things might be a bit easier!

As for the examples: organizations, cults, guilds, branches of government, factions, etc. Things that are tied to the general lore of the group but also have their own substance. Or side-quests in the gaming language, if you will!

Ah, yes! That’s all perfect. Well, my RP is based on Court of the Dead. They have three factions (Spirit, Flesh, and Bone) that are each vying for supremacy over the other, or to be in the good graces of their leader, the Alltaker. The city itself has all of these amazing sights and sections where players can do a bunch of stuff to keep them busy. Did you by chance have a reward system in place for having players partake in roles?

Oh okay, that is interesting and it can definitely play as different sects or factions. So you might have that part covered too!

Reward system is basically new open story options for each character, and also character development. Moving on with the story, characters' decisions will accordingly open new doors for the future events. Also when they take particular roles, they get certain traits and advantages that will aid them in their future endeavors, but this is still the system that is involving, since we want to find what fits our system the most.

Ah, I can definitely see the possibilities more clearly now.

Lastly, does your RP involve dice rolls, and did it take awhile for you to gain traction as far as getting people to join, or did that all just naturally come together over time. I guess my worry (which is always the gamble I know) is creating this expansive world only for it to never gain any interest.

Yes we do have dice rolls and a very complex system, and it did take some time for others to join, because that isn't something that attracts everyone. Same goes for the expansive world. You'll need a lot of time and patience for that.

Thanks Queen for all of your helpful advice and taking the time to response to this thread. I feel a lot more confident now about taking on this project!

No problem, I wish you good luck!

I have been running a group for about a month now?
Its definitely not the first time I have run a group, world or RP campaign. I have been doing them for a good 20 years give or take – just on different platforms.

Mine is FAR more focused, I will admit as its centered around one building in an expansive world.
For mine dice is optional but I am running a GM’ed campaign (much like a dungeon master) and I have immersive ‘events’ to bring my members together to mingle.


With every new thing, its always going to be a bit slow to start. And my recommendation is start small and slowly building upon that core foundation.

Where Queen has a very structured group with a complex system, my group is more freeform with member base capability of contributing and expanding lore.. or even changing the entire group dynamics through RP.

I have a rank system in mine that provides people different kinds of RP prompts, access levels and secret knowledge. People can enter the group at any rank and have the capability of free forming to promotions or even getting a disciplinary demotion.

Honestly, there is a LOT of ways to run a group, it just really depends on what you want to do and the sort of environment you want to create.

But you absolutely (like Queen said) need a foundation. A solid idea to work from, and ‘areas’ that pool people together otherwise its just a more concise LFRP forum.

You also have to be patient. It takes a while to grow a group.

Group information should be clear, flow well from page to page. Give them a foundation of what they need to know to start but try not to overwhelm them with information that isn’t critical right off the bat. You can create forums to share extra information of whats going on that’s more ‘optional’ to know depending on location, class, character type, rank ect.


If your going to run an actual story campaign you need to have the concept of it start to finish but also be able to improvise – because when given 2 choices people often choose a 3rd. Have it be believable to your environment, give your players a reason to be excited about it and different options to participate that could entice all character builds.
Because campaigns can be HUGE and overwhelming, I try to make mine optional so players can opt out and observe it from afar but don’t have to be critically involved. This is great for those who don’t have a lot of time to provide a huge campaign but still want to be involved.

I am on coffee cup number one so I hope that made sense?

From personal experience I've learned that for me, it's better to smart small and grow over time. This provides you with a lot of chances to change things and pour your concept into a more definitive form before inviting more players or members to your group. It's certainly trial and error and people don't always respond to changes well so it's easier to inflict change on a smaller group than on a big group of members.

Aside from that I've learned that depending on your concept and it's range of options, you might attract your players slowly or you might end up with a little bit more interest than you bargained for from the start. In recruitment, I'd therefor recommend you limit your open spots in the group at first and place other interested players on a waiting list to contact once you have the group running smoothly as it is.

I might have a different way to go about things and for many others, the above might not be a problem so it's definitely depending on the type of person you are and the skills you have to work with. If organization is your strong suit and/or you worked on the concept of this group for quite some time then you might even not run into any of these issues at all. My biggest downfall for mine was overenthousiasm and impulsive decisions and I learned to adapt the way I go about things to work around those downfalls.

In other words: try to define what your downfalls will be and work around them.

Most of all enjoy and don't forget that you're doing this for fun and not as a job. Make it enjoyable for the player but for you too!

These are all super helpful! I just opened my group today, and it's going well so far but I'm learning a lot as I go. From what little experience I do have, I'd say be prepared to take suggestions and questions and run with them. World-building becomes a lot more give-and-take once you have players involved.

Oglavaeil, I'd love to hear progress as you go. Your game premise sounds fun and, as another newbie admin, it would be nice to chat about behind-the-scenes set-up and maintenance.